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February 11, 2013

There is a lot of
discussion in the media about the direction of the RPO, but what gets lost is
the work the orchestra does now to
inspire young people in our community. It's an essential component of the
RPO, one that helps us fulfill our mission and reach new audiences for the
future.

Today, 1,800 students
from the Rochester area joined the RPO and Principal Conductor for
Education Michael Butterman for an
interactive concert exploring how music tells tales and sparks imaginations.
It's the first of four education concerts this week that will reach 8,000
children aged 9 to 12, and one of a number of education and community events
that reach over 30,000 people each year. Later in March, the RPO welcomes roughly 3,000 primary-school children for two performances.

The Rochester
Philharmonic Youth Orchestra, whose music director David Harman is
celebrating his 20th anniversary, will be heading to Carnegie Hall on February
17. On March 11, the young musicians of the RPYO will join members of the RPO in a side-by-side concert in Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre.

The RPYO, a key part of the RPO's
community activities, allows young musicians to more deeply explore the music
they love. Evidence of the RPYO's success was on display just this past weekend,
when alumnus Ward Stare led the RPO in two concerts that critics and audience
members alike raved about.

As always, we thank you for your continued
support of the RPO, which makes programs such as these possible. Follow
us on Facebook to keep up with our education and community activities.

To
celebrate the 50th anniversary of the James Bond film franchise, the
RPO presents Classic Bond on Friday and Saturday,
February 15 and 16, 2013, at 8 p.m. in Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre. The
23rd Bond film, Skyfall,
released in the U.S. in theatres on November 9, 2012 (and on DVD February 12, 2003), prompted us to ask RPO Principal
Pops Conductor Jeff Tyzik for his Top Five favorite James Bond
themes…

1.The
James Bond Theme
(Monty Norman):This is from the very
first Bond film in 1962, Nr. No, and
remains the iconic, evocative, signature theme for the entire franchise.Frequent Bond composer John Barry arranged
the piece, and claimed he wrote it as well.But Monty Norman won several law suits against publishers, and continues
to receive royalties from the work.Hear
it here:youtube.com/James Bond Theme

2.Thunderball
(John Barry & Don Black, sung by Tom Jones):After United Artists scrapped John Barry’s
& Leslie Bricusse’s original theme entitled “Mr. Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang”
because they wanted the theme to have the same title as the film, Barry teamed
up with Don Black to write “Thunderball” for the 1965 Bond film. Tom Jones
fainted in the recording booth after singing the song’s final, high note, of
which he said:“I closed my eyes and
held the note for so long that when I opened my eyes, the room was
spinning.”Hear
it here:youtube.com/Thunderball

3.Nobody
Does It Better
(Marvin Hamlisch & Carole Bayer Sager, sung by Carly Simon):Written and recorded for the 1977 Bond film,
The Spy Who Loved Me, it was the
first Bond theme to be titled differently than the name of the film since Dr. No, although the phrase “the spy who
loved me” is included in the lyrics. The song was Carly Simon’s longest-running
hit, and received an Oscar nomination for Best Song.

4.Live
and Let Die
(Paul & Linda McCartney):Written
for the 1973 film of the same name, this was the best-selling Bond theme ever at
the time.It reunited McCartney with
Beatles producer George Martin, who both produced the song and arranged the
orchestral break. Originally, film producer Harry Saltzman wanted an African
American female to record the song for the movie, but McCartney would only the
allow the song to be used if Wings performed it. Saltzman, who had previously
rejected the chance to produce A Hard
Day’s Night, decided not to make the same mistake again and agreed. Both the
original version and the Guns N’ Roses remake were nominated for Grammys.
Hear
it here: youtube.com/Live and Let Die

5.Goldfinger
(John Barry, Anthony Newley & Leslie Bricusse, sung by Shirley
Bassey):Written for the third Bond film in 1964,
“Goldfinger” is said to have started the tradition of Bond theme songs being
from the pop genre or using popular artists. The piece is a favorite of frequent
Bond composer John Barry, who said it was “the first time I had complete
control, writing the score and the song.” The musical score, in keeping with the
film's theme of gold and metal, makes heavy use of brass and metallic chimes,
and is described as “brassy and raunchy” with "a sassy sexiness to it.”
Hear it
here:youtube.com/Goldfinger